Background:
For our final full day of our vacation we wanted to go sightseeing in
Chicago. Being the fact this would only be my second time of my adult life to
be in Chicago (the other time was 2013 for a convention), it was a little more
difficult to plan where to stay. The closer you get to the Loop the more
expensive the hotels become and being the fact that we were a group of five
made it even more difficult. However, as it turned out we had enough reward
points to get a Holiday Inn Express for just a small fee.
I also wanted to find a hotel that was close to a METRA commuter train
station so we would have an easy journey to the Loop and not have to worry
about driving (which would be a very good decision since there was a major
parade and traffic was a nightmare). Once we went over our options we chose the
Holiday Inn Express O’Hare West.
Background:
For our final full day of our vacation we wanted to go sightseeing in
Chicago. Being the fact this would only be my second time of my adult life to
be in Chicago (the other time was 2013 for a convention), it was a little more
difficult to plan where to stay. The closer you get to the Loop the more
expensive the hotels become and being the fact that we were a group of five
made it even more difficult. However, as it turned out we had enough reward
points to get a Holiday Inn Express for just a small fee.
I also wanted to find a hotel that was close to a METRA commuter train
station so we would have an easy journey to the Loop and not have to worry
about driving (which would be a very good decision since there was a major
parade and traffic was a nightmare). Once we went over our options we chose the
Holiday Inn Express O’Hare West.
Reservations:
Making these reservations was not easy, not because
booking it was difficult but finding the best combination of right location and
one that I could book with the International Hotel Group points. Once we picked
out the hotel booking on the IHG website was quick and easy
Hotel:
The hotel is located on US Highways 12/20/45/Manheim Road just south of
the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway Interstate 290 in the Hillside Town Center.
The hotel is 5 stories in a basic rectangular design. There are railroad tracks to the south of the
building but only one train went by in the two nights we were there and it was
during the day. The hotel has a business center, pool, fitness center, and a
full breakfast.
Checking In:
After having been on the road for almost 12 hours we were ready to
crash. As I walked in the door an employee walked in with me and immediately
went behind the desk and started checking me in. He asked if I wanted some
water then checked my name off a list and handed me my key cards. He also asked
if I needed directions anywhere and noted were everything was in the motel.
The Room:
One of the reasons we picked this hotel was that it had large rooms
with two queen beds and a sofa bed for the 5 of us. As we walked in the
bathroom was left with the open closet on the right. Then there was a small
living area that had the sofa bed, coffee table, high table and two chairs.
There was also a microwave and mini-fridge in this area. This opened up to the
bedroom area of the room that had the two queen beds, a writing desk, and
armoire with the flat screen television.
The breakfast at this Holiday Inn was very good. There were two different
counters on each side of the Breakfast room with a wide variety of food
offerings and drinks.
Nearby:
As mentioned above the hotel is located in a shopping center that has a
Target and other stores but there are chain restaurants in the parking lot
including IHOP, and Panda Express. Across the street is a pizza restaurant and a
Wingstop. Across Manheim is a Dunkin Donuts and a Burger King. While there are
sidewalks in the area the parking lot itself is not walkable to say nothing of
Manheim which is 3 lanes wide.
One I things I liked about the hotel is that it was 10 minutes away
from two METRA rail stations on two different METRA rail lines which made the
trip to the Loop very convenient. There is not much to the north but 10 minutes
to the south was the METRA La Grange station on the BNSF line, which is located
in a commercial district with many independent restaurants and stores.
Problems:
There were a few problems with the hotel.
The first problem I encountered was with the business center. Our plan
for the full day was to go to the Willis Tower then to the Museum of Science
and Industry or Shedd Aquarium. There are two computers in the business center
but one of them was out of order. I got on the other computer and purchased
tickets for the Willis Tower and the printer would not print. Checked the toner
and it was out and could not find another one. I talked to the person at the
front desk who was the one who originally checked me in but he did not know
what to do. I shook the toner and tried to print again but then it was out of
paper however I did find some paper in the one of the cabinets and was barely
able to print out the tickets before the computer itself started having some
problems.
The second problem was with the air conditioner in the room. It was
very hot the days we were at the hotel and the air conditioner was just not
cutting it. The air conditioner would operate for five or ten minutes before
shutting off for 20 or more minutes. The temperature in the room never did go
below 78 degrees and many times was in the 80’s.
The other problem was the noise at the hotel. The Latin American Motorcycle Association was
staying at our hotel and while the members themselves were very friendly the
noise of their motorcycles day and night at times was annoying especially when
we were trying to sleep. The biggest problem was that it was not one or two
motorcycles at a time but sometimes ten or more all revving their engines while
coming and going.
Checking Out:
When I went and checked out I tried to tell the person that was
checking me out about the problems with the air conditioner but they just took the
keys and walked away and didn’t seem that interested in actually talking to the
person being checked out.
Final Thoughts:
On the positive side the room was comfortable was located close to two
different commuter train lines, friendly staff at check in, full breakfast,
well equipped fitness center, indoor swimming pool and located in a shopping
center.
On the downside the area is not walkable, the air conditioner did not
operate well, the business center had issues, and the person checking me out
did not seem interested in hearing about the air conditioner problem.
While I only paid a small amount for the room for the two nights I rate
hotels on what the going rate of the hotel is, which in this case is around $100.00
a night.
When all is said and done I have to give the hotel a grade of C-.
It does have the features you expect from a hotel at this price point,
but it did have some failures and when it comes down to it while the hotels
location made reaching the commuter train line easy it is essentially a typical
suburban hotel with very little character and little to no walkability.
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